IRAN: Space to breathe in downtown Tehran

Climb up the stairs out of downtown Tehran’s Galoubandak subway stop near the Grand Bazaar and you can’t help but be astounded. A sidewalk that used to be packed full of shoppers, cart pushers and motorcyclists, leaving no elbow room for any of them, is now a scene of old women and men relaxing on benches, reading newspapers, gossiping or chatting.

The Grand Bazaar was once the hub of all consumer goods filtering into the country. It’s declined in economic power in recent decades, in part because of global economic trends beyond Iran's control. But the motor vehicle pollution and congestion in downtown Tehran have not helped either, driving away many potential customers.

About 15 days ago, the smoggy and congested city of Tehran launched a new experiment along 15 Khordad St., which runs through the bazaar. Mayor Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf decided to bar all private vehicles from the street. Then he cut the street in half down the middle. One lane became a thruway for green-colored, gas-powered minibuses, below, ferrying shoppers up and down the busy street. The other became an extended sidewalk, with pine trees and benches.

“It is remarkable,” said Hamlet Abnousi, who relaxed on a park bench where death-defying motorcyclists once wove in and out of traffic. “I can stroll from the subway stop and shop and go back to the underground without hassles. I think the police can manage this area much more easily too. You know, pickpocketing and mugging were common here and muggers could vanish into the crowd.”

Whether the move will help business remains to be seen. Right now things are slow because everyone has already spent their extra money buying gifts for the March 21 Persian New Year holiday.

Fardin Mohebpour runs a small tablecloth workshop in the nearby city of Karaj. He used to fight through traffic to get to the bazaar, but now takes public transportation into the capital to buy fabrics and take them back to his shop. “I can take the train from Karaj and come here to the bazaar for my wholesale purchases," he says.

 

Some hope more women will be encouraged to come to the area. Before, they were often physically harassed by young men, said Ali Ahmadi, among the street-side gold and jewelry vendors at the main gate of the bazaar. “Those perverted men who physically teased women and fled into the crowd cannot keep on with their bad habits, as there is enough room for walking," he said.

But some said removing cars from the area will only hurt business.  Massoud Molaee, co-owner of a garment shop, said the city didn’t give storekeepers ample time to lodge protests against the plan. “If I buy or sell in bulk or huge quantities, I have to wait until 7 p.m. to bring a van across the street and load it with two or four carts,” he said. “By that time the banks and offices are closed.”

Still, he conceded, “the area is much cleaner, less polluted and safer than before.”

—Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran

Photos: Scenes from an experiment in car-free living in downtown Tehran. Credit: Hadi Tabrizi / Islamic Republic News Agency

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